Smith leaves door open for “what if”

Give Alex Smith credit for handling a difficult situation with class. The 49ers quarterback, already reeling from the suicide of his best friend, had to react Thursday the announcement that J.T. O’Sullivan would be the starter again this week.

Smith could have ducked reporters. On this day, he had a free pass.

Instead, he consented not only to talk but to hold a news conference. Smith waked out of the locker room — looking weary and grief-stricken — and planted himself in front of the microphones and cameras.

Smith faced two types of questions, about the death of his friend and about being listed as a second-stringer. He handled them all with dignity.

Believe me, not many athletes would have done that.

Anyway, as Smith talked, he dropped a hint that he might – MIGHT – have had a chance to start this week had it not been for his sad and startling news back home.

This is his complete quote:

“It’s hard. I’ve talked to Coach Nolan a lot this week and I think it’s a difficult situation just with what happened. I think maybe he was looking to…I don’t know. Maybe this could have been a different week, but obviously with this going on, it kind of puts things in perspective for me a little bit.

“And I’ll come back and treat it the way I always have. Just focus in and take advantage of the reps I get and try to make the most out of them. It’s kind of all I can do. Do the best I can. I’m going to go out there and focus in and just really try and take advantage of it, and not worry about who I’m in there with or who I’m going against. Just worry about my responsibilities going in and executing.”

That one sentence makes you wonder. Smith said, “Maybe this could have been a different week.”

Does that mean it was his turn to start? Does it mean the team shifted because of Smith’s personal distraction? Nolan had no desire to clarify Thursday.

“I think it is unfair to even comment on that issue with how it relates to what we are doing because that’s a personal issue,’’ Nolan said. “We went through that last year and I know Alex is having a difficult time. I’d rather leave it at that than tie it into what we are doing because I don’t think that’s fair.”

My read on the situation is that O’Sullivan was in line to start anyway. Certainly, there were signs long before Sunday that O’Sullivan was taking control in the quarterback race. He had been getting most of the first-team reps in practice and got the meaningful assignment of starting against the Raiders in the preseason opener.

But the alternate theory (Smith starting this week) would help explain why Nolan urged reporters all week not to read anything into O’Sullivan’s extra work with the first team. The coach repeated over and over again not to overreact to the quarterback rotation — or lack thereof — despite mounting evidence that his mind was made up.

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Vernon Davis won his latest practice fight by a TKO. The tightly wound tight end mixed things up this time with rookie linebacker Larry Grant. Each player let fly with a few roundhouses, but Grant wound up on the short end. He left the playing field and needed tending to by athletic trainer Jeff Ferguson.

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Running back Frank Gore and receiver Isaac Bruce will play sparingly against the Packers, perhaps a series or two. Bruce might not play at all except that the 49ers are shorthanded at receiver because of injuries.

A reporter asked Nolan about Aaron Rodgers’ development as a quarterback.

Nolan: “Other than watching this little bit that I see here, I didn’t pay close attention to any of the things that were going on in this last month or so with Brett [Favre] and that whole situation. So I really don’t have a lot of experience watching. It is kind of difficult for me to comment on the play of another team other than a little bit of film and getting ready to play. It looks to me like he’s got a pretty good feel for the offense. … The other day he came out with some decent numbers, but outside of that it’s hard for me to say much about it.”

Daniel Brown

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So I really don’t have a lot of experience watching. It is kind of difficult for me to comment on the play of another team other than a little bit of film and getting ready to play

This is what the HEAD COACH said about watching film on a team he is playing this week and in his conference…..

Nice…atta boy Nolan…don’t watch any film on the other team.

I feel for Smith on so many levels….losing a friend…having to play for this owner, gm and coach…its too bad he play for Eddie D

Tom in Santa Rosa

Dan. I’m enjoying your takes on all things Niner. It sure sounds like Smith may have at least been given a couple of series behind the first offense, but for the distraction due to his best friends tragic death. I do hope he can muster the strength to be productive against GB and turn this back into a true QB competition. Keep up the good work . . . I just discovered your blog the other day and enjoy it.

Harold Fuller

The only thing I have to say is that I am no longer a 49ers’ fan. Nolan is a liar. He lied to Alex Smith, Shaun Hill, the Yorks and the 49er faithfuls.

BellevueMike

Dan, to be honest, I’m tired of hearing about the “class” of local athletes. My god, if you googled “class” and “Zito” you’d probably come up with about 100 articles this year from the Chron and the Merc talking about his amazing class while the fans endure his atrocious year (actually 2 years).

99% of the time, class only matters to you, the sportswriters, since you have to personally deal with the guys to get information. Therefore to sportwriters, and only sportswriters, does “class”, or whether or not he’s a “nice guy” or a “good guy” or an “ass” make a difference.

If they’re nice, or classy, then your job is easier and you may come to admire them as people. However, those attributes, while impacting your ability to do your job, rarely has ANY bearing on why fans read columns. They simply want to know how the Niners are sorting out their QB mess and what the current status is. O’Sullivan is staring this week regardless of Smith’s personal tragedy and his ability to handle it. By the way, the suggestion that there was a “rotation” and that Smith losing his friend cost him an opportunity to start is preposterous.

If you want to write an article in week #6 about O’Sullivan not starting because a parent died and he’s personally crushed, then yeah, that’s news.

But the Barry Zito (who is stealing a paycheck) is classy, and the Alex Smith (who is stealing a paycheck) is classy, and the flipside Barry Bonds (who was underpaid for most of his last contract) is a jerk, is nearly irrelevant to the paying customers of your newspaper.

WR

Alex Smith may be a nice, classy guy who is going through some very tough personal issues right now. I feel for him.

HOWEVER, if he had actually lived up to one iota of what a No. 1 draft pick should, O’Sullivan would be starting ONLY because Smith needed to deal with these personal issues. There would be NO quarterback controversy.

The Niners should do themselves and Smith a favor – eat the rest of his salary, release him, and let him catch on with another team as a backup – which is all he’s ever going to be in this league.

He’s a horrible fit for the current offense, which requires split-second decisions and a quick release arm. Let him go find a better fit.

Goobye Mike you gotta go

I think it is time to begin the Mike Nolan Death Watch. Mike is a nice giy who would make a good boyscout troop leader but lacks the imagination and vision to be successful in the NFL. Since i=he was supposed to be a defensive guru, where have the Niners rater on defense. His handling of Alex Smith from day has been dull, duller and dullest. My bet is Nolan is gone by Game 5

Jack

Dan,

Thanks for using your blog to bring us the kind of information.
I pull for a person. It is hard to pull for a Jersey number or a set of stat’s.

I agree that Alex showed class and knowing this helps me to get
know what type of person he is. Kind of like knowing a lot about our Olympic
athletes helps me to pull for them.

Also, being the 2nd string QB is probably better than being the starter
at this point. i.e. most popular QB on a losing team is the backup. Given
all of the injuries and new players, the 9er offensive players will have to
wear name tags in the huddle on opening day. This doesn’t fell like a wining
formula to start the season but things could solidify by mid-year.

I think we all respect Alex as a person — and most of us were rooting for him to succeed. But the fact is that his very character may be what is holding him back. He seems to lack the competitive aggressiveness to assert himself and “take” the job. In additional, he seems to lack the assertiveness / confidence to play aggressively — take chances, let the ball loose. He seems to really struggle with letting the ball fly into those tight spots in the middle of the field. He prefers to thow the out routes and deep patterns where the chances of failure (interceptions) are less. (Maybe that comes from his first year with all the interceptions).

That said, as much as it bums me out the JTO is supposedly our savior, Alex didn’t seize the job, so its his own fault (assuming it was a fair competition – which is debatable).

You would think that a conservative QB would fit perfectly with Nolan’s caution.

hotdogger

All of you that continue saying that Smith hasn’t lived up to his #1 draft status need to leave analysis to the pros and go back to your Madden 09 draft. This is just ridiculous, and I keep reading it over and over every day.

His first season was a bust… he clearly was a green rookie.

His second season was a definite step in the right direction. He led the team on the field and had a good year for a very young starting qb.

Season 3 sucked… not b/c of anything he did. He lost his OC and Nolan screwed up in picking a successor. If anyone should be blamed for that debacle, it’s that jerk Turner. He signed a new contract, and then shot out the door when SD came calling. Nolan should have never trusted an ex-Cowboy!! Then he got hurt and is just now looking like he has recovered physically. Nolan then shows what a total jerk he is by throwing him under the bus after the team goes into a nose dive and the season is lost. Way to be accountable coach!!

Season 4 and another new OC… this one pride’s himself in taking unknowns and turning them into pro-bowlers. Great plan. Let’s just throw the #1 pick away after just over 2 years of game experience and 4 different OC’s.

Bottom line is that I’m starting to have more respect for Alex Smith than the owner, head coach, 4th OC, and all the fans that have abandoned ship prematurely. Take one second and think about. If you have ever played QB, you would know learning 4 systems in 4 years is a recipe for disaster. Go ahead… try it… all you Madden should just go off and select a different playbook see how long it takes to memorize your plays… LOL!! It is almost embarrassing to call myself a fan of this franchise anymore.

Bubba in the 707

BellevueHater . . just wow. I’m absolutely amazed at your point of view . . . beyond cold. Maybe Nolan should dock Smith’s check for missing practice today. BTW, this is a FREE blog where the usually dispassionate beat writers are able to interject more opinion into their writing.

Embarrassed by Association

Great post, Hotdogger! I’ve been saying that all along. If Alex had failed in a fair evaluation over the past four years, I’d be right in there saying it’s time to say “so long”. But, what about this four year mess under Mikey’s watchful eye has been fair? Nolan has tried to bring us “Billick-Ball” for his entire tenure… all he cares about is defense, and that re-building job is dubious at best. I watch other pre-season games and guys I’ve never heard of look a thousand times better than the stiffs we have starting on offense. Mark my words, this idiot is going to get Gore hurt this year, because JTO is a hack that isn’t going to be able to pass worth a damn. If he could pass, he wouldn’t be here. Frank is going to get 500 carries… Dickerson’s record or bust… I’m afraid it will be bust. We can only hope that Scotty wakes up, gets some nads and cuts his big brother loose before things get worse… (can they?)

Richard

The problem always . . ALWAYS starts at the top. Eddie D, where are you when we need you!! We went from the BEST owner in pro sports to the left-overs in ownership. Alex Smith is a quarterback without a coach. The beloved Niners have thrown yet another coordinator at him with an entirely different system. Then they bring in a mediocre back up . . maybe strong number three . . who has been with the offensive coordinator and knows his system. OF COURSE, he is going to be ahead of Smith on the system. Let him start and run the table. That is how we get Nolan out of town. Smith will be a solid NFL quarterback. I’m betting it will not be in SF. The biggest mistake of this pathetic organization is the absolute FAILURE to develop the tight end relationship. Montana was blessed with some GREAT tight ends, AND he had coaching to develop that. Get in trouble . . find Brent, John, Russ . .

If I had had my say, Davis would have moved in with Smith, and they would have become best friends. A couple of movies where two men escaped jail handcuffed together come to mind. The coaching staff has failed there . . just for starters.

I’ll stop. After the ups and downs of the 50’s into the 60’s and on . . then the years of two . . back to back hall of famers . . this is just painful. Does Eddie D have a brother . . a good cousin . .